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The top executive at SeaWorld Entertainment Inc.'s largest shareholder suggested that former SeaWorld Orlando trainer Dawn Brancheau should be blamed for her own death, claiming that the veteran animal trainer broke multiple safety rules before she was pulled into a tank and killed by a six-ton orca in February 2010. SeaWorld "had one safety lapse -- interestingly, with a situation where the person involved violated all the safety rules that we had," Stephen Schwarzman, the chairman and chief executive officer of private-equity giant Blackstone Group, said in an interview Thursday on CNBC. Blackstone said in a written statement that Schwarzman "misspoke" in...

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The top executive at SeaWorld Entertainment Inc.'s largest shareholder suggested that former SeaWorld Orlando trainer Dawn Brancheau should be blamed for her own death, claiming that the veteran animal trainer broke multiple safety rules before she was...

If SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment's new foray onto the big screen and other new businesses like hotels and more boutique parks are a success, the company will certainly see an increase in attendance and profits. And, perhaps, this important side...

Attendance is rebounding across Orlando-based SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment's 10 U.S. theme parks, the company's top executive said Wednesday. SeaWorld Parks President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Atchison said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment had a banner year in 2011. Attendance and guest spending rose across its U.S. theme parks. Earningsset a company record. But SeaWorld won't have to pay a dime in federal income tax. It will not have to pay any Florida corpora

Orlando's theme parks endured a grim 2009, but there's hope a new hero will rescue them in 2010: Harry Potter.
Nearly three years after announcing the project, Universal Orlando is finally poised to open The Wizarding World of Harry Potter this spring....

A longstanding alliance between Universal Orlando and SeaWorld Orlando is approaching a crossroads. After nearly 15 years of selling joint ticket packages, the two resorts must decide within the next year and a half whether they want to continue selling the

The parent company of Universal Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood says attendance at the two resorts dipped slightly during the first three months of the year. But the customers who did show up spent more money. âWe had slightly lower attendance o

A top executive at SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment has left the company. Joe Couceiro, SeaWorld Parksâ chief marketing officer, retired April 16, the company said Wednesday. Couceiro, an executive vice president who reported directly to SeaWorld Park

The Residence Inn Boca Raton located inside the Boca Commerce Office Park has a new owner.
The 120-room hotel at 525 N.W. 77 St. has sold for $12 million to BRE Newton Hotels Property Owner LLC, according to a deed filed Monday in Palm Beach County.
BRE...

Austin Beutner, the civic leader and former Wall Street investment banker, is the new publisher and chief executive of the Los Angeles Times.Beutner, 54, who served as first deputy mayor of Los Angeles for more than a year and briefly explored a run for...

A three-building Beverly Hills office complex that includes the headquarters of Playboy Enterprises Inc. is being sold for $210 million, according to two people with knowledge of the agreement.Tishman Speyer agreed to sell the property to Rockefeller...

Shares of action camcorder maker GoPro Inc. surged in their initial public offering Thursday, and no one was happier than the private equity firms that got to cash in on the deal.
This year's IPO boom has helped to propel the stock market, boost economic...

Higher home prices are chasing investment firms from the market, but the largest continues to stockpile properties in South Florida.
From January through May, affiliates tied to the Blackstone Group have bought 430 properties in Palm Beach County, more...

For decades, nearly all homes were bought by individuals, but the collapse in prices brought on by the housing crunch and Great Recession attracted large investors looking to make money buying and renting single-family homes.The investments of such...

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite's riveting documentary "Blackfish" tells the story of Tilikum, an aggressive bull orca who has lived the last 30 years in captivity. The film's central debate circles around what exactly caused the whale's...

The Weather Channel wants DirecTV to waive its steep cancellation fees for customers seeking to drop the satellite service because it no longer carries the network.
The request is being made in an open letter being sent to DirecTV's board of directors...

Blackstone Group, the New York-based private equity group, announced Tuesday it would hire 50,000 military veterans over the next five years across its various businesses.
The company said it is partnering with the White House, which is leading an effort...

Facing a mounting public-relations crisis, SeaWorld has finally responded to charges of animal mistreatment made in this year's documentary "Blackfish."
On Friday, SeaWorld paid to publish an open letter in eight newspapers, including the Los...

Some heavy storms may be headed toward the Weather Channel.
DirecTV, the El Segundo satellite broadcaster with more than 20 million subscribers around the country, has quietly started distributing a network called WeatherNation just as its deal to...